Cologne–Bonn Airport Rail Link Inaugurated
11 June 2004
When the rail link to the Cologne–Bonn Airport, an integral part of the high-speed line between Cologne and the Rhine/Main area, is inaugurated tomorrow, the region will acquire a new and highly attractive air and rail connection. On behalf of DB Netz AG and DB Station & Service AG, represented by DB ProjektBau GmbH (all German Rail units), the Transportation Systems Group (TS) of Siemens AG has ensured that the telecommunications systems, overhead lines and electrical equipment as well as the signaling and safety systems for that line were completed on time.
Less than two years after official inauguration of the Cologne–Rhine/Main high speed line – a project in which Siemens also played a major role – ICE 3 intercity express trains from both Frankfurt and Cologne, fast regional trains, and suburban rapid transit trains can now stop directly at Cologne-Bonn Airport. This direct connection to the terminal ensures passengers of a quick transfer between plane and train.
Siemens has supplied extensive installations for the roughly 15-kilometer link that branches off from the main line, many of those vital components being realized within the context of a turnkey project. In the telecommunications area, for example, a digitally capable amplifier and antenna system for the BOS radio system (for authorities and organizations responsible for safety), including a tunnel radio system, was planned and installed by Siemens on a railway line of German Rail (DB AG) for the very first time. The system facilitates communication with and between the different rescue services in an emergency. Siemens also installed the GSM-R-based train radio system, DB AG’s cable-bound railway telephone system, the passenger information system, as well as the fire alarm system for the station and the tunnels.
For the subsystems power supply and electrification equipment, Siemens was responsible for supplying the overhead contact line system including 450 masts, a 53-km-long catenary system (contact wire and messenger wire), 27 kilometers of aluminum cable (for grounding and power supply), and the line voltage testing equipment (for indicating to rescue services whether or not the overhead contact line is live). It also provided the safety equipment and power supply systems for the tunnels (also including 675 lamps and 340 power terminals), the electronic interlocking and the Frankfurter Strasse station as well as the platform lighting for the Frankfurter Strasse and Porz-Wahn stations. Moreover, four switch heating stations will ensure that the switches will also operate perfectly in winter.
Siemens is additionally responsible for significant aspects of the signaling and safety system. The latter basically consists of an electronic interlocking, 50 signals and 8 switches. For this purpose, around 50 kilometers of signal cable have been laid. The shape and size of the tunnels necessitated diverse specially designed signals suitable for suspension from the tunnel walls. The electronic interlocking for the Cologne-Bonn Airport station is located at the northern end of the station. It is operated by the traffic controller in the electronic interlocking control center in Troisdorf. The northern section of the Cologne–Rhine/Main high speed line, from Siegburg to Cologne, is also controlled from that center. Like the electronic interlocking for Cologne-Bonn Airport, this section of the line is part of the scope of supply and services rendered by Siemens TS in Braunschweig.
Meeting the most demanding railway requirements and is one of the most modern stretches of track in Europe today, the airport rail link marks another achievement of Siemens following on from successful completion of the high speed line between Cologne and the Rhine/Main area. This high speed line has been one of the most important projects in Germany’s railway history and has also been completed by Siemens TS as a turnkey project.
The Transportation Systems Group (TS) of Siemens AG is one of the leading international suppliers to the railways industry. As single source supplier and system integrator, the Group combines in its business segments Automation & Power, Rolling Stock, Turnkey Systems and Integrated Services all the expertise necessary to cover the spectrum from signaling and control systems to traction power supplies, as well as rolling stock for mass transit, regional and main line services. Extensive experience in project management and forward-looking service concepts complement our portfolio. In fiscal 2003 (ended September 30) TS generated sales of EUR4.7 billion with a staff of around 17,700 the world over.
